Pages

Follow My Journey, or Reach Out And Connect:

Monday, November 3, 2008

On the Eve of the Election

I don't know if anyone reads this blog.

But on the eve of the election I ask you to vote with God. Not Focus on the Family or the 700 Club. Not SNL or Comedy Central. But to prayerfully approach the topics, getting your guidance from God. Also look at factcheck.org and snopes.com. Candidates lie. A lot. But even if your logic turns to you to one candidate, pray and vote with God. I'll elaborate below.

::I edited this post to take out all the 'below' but I'm going to put it in my comments on this post so you can read it if you wish. But this blog is not about politics, so while I am not deleting this post's existence, or even it's entirety, I am making it less important now that the election is over. God bless. ::

1 comment:

I'm an independent. On some issues I agree with the right, and on some the left. I also am a Christian, and God is more important to me than America. That doesn't mean I don't care about my country though.

I'm going to reveal myself and put down the key issues and where I stand on them, because a blog is about the person writing it... however, this is not a political rant. It's November 3rd and I'm still undecided. Oh, I know which way I'm leaning! But I'm still praying... I'm dividing my each section in three parts: a) my main thoughts b) my biggest "however" c) the relevancy of this in regards to presidential candidates, legally. (ie Executive v. Legislative power, etc)

Economy:

a) I don't know that either candidate has a good plan. But like most Republicans, McCain seeks to divide haves and have nots. Not intentionally, but that is what would happen from his plan. I get sick to my stomach listening to most Republican politicians talk about economic issues. They are so very often completely devoid of perspective. They get angry about taxing rich people higher than poor, when for the rich person it is the difference between a certified pre-owned BMW and a new one, and for the poor it might be the difference between food or the power bill. Or maybe they've already decided they can't afford the power bill but have to decide between food and the rent or prescriptions that can save their lives. These aren't select sob stories. They happen. I've known people they happened to, and with foreclosures on the rise it's more and more common.b) However, as a Christian I "cannot worship both God and mammon", mammon being a synonym for money. Therefore, money should not be important to me. That doesn't mean I can't care about others welfare, which all to often depends on the health of the economy, of course. And when our country suffers, so do many worse off world wide. Economy is still an important issue, but fear and worry are enemies of the Christian. Seeking wealth is not a worthy task of a Christian, unless it is only for the kingdom of God.c) In the government the health of the economy is most dictated by the legislative branch, not the executive. However, foreign policy effects the economy. Gas prices are far more the outcome of the President's outcome then the legislative. But economy cannot be solved by the President alone. And the blame lies also in the private sector... which is why we need more government oversight. Free market capitalism makes rich people and their victims.

Healthcare:

a) I think it is shameful that our nation is so prosperous and the leading innovator in healthcare, and yet we are so substandard in healthcare compared to other "first world" countries. I do believe in a nationalized healthcare system. This has worked and has not crippled the countries of Europe. A nation that neglects its sick is sick itself.b) However, neither candidate has a great solution. Obama's is better though.c) This will almost entirely be in the legislative branch's hands, so as important as it is, voting for the President on this issue alone would be silly.

Ecology/the Environment:

a) I do care about the environment and think we should be good stewards. But I also think that people are more important than plants and animals, even though I love them. But people's wealth is not necessarily more important. Everyone should be allowed to have a livelihood. Not everyone should allowed to be rich. If a poor fisherman's livelihood is being threatened, I support the politician that stands up for them, though I also support efforts to find new industries to redirect the workers into if there is necessity to save a species or something. I do not support the politician that stands up for a timber baron that wishes to slaughter a forest. The difference? The fisherman's family faces homelessness and starvation. The timber baron is getting rich. Now, some people making money off of timber are not rich, and vice versa. I understand that. Each case must be evaluated. But I put the environment ahead of people's fortunes, but behind their right to pay for basic needs for their family. I want the planet to be healthy.b) Biggest 'however'? All I can say is sometimes people's livelihoods will be destroyed. That's why I say try to redirect the workers, create new jobs. It is easier to teach a human a new way to make a living then it is to save a species or clean the air. I do think most environmentalists are radical though.c) Again, this is mainly a legislative issue. That doesn't mean the President's views aren't important: I do believe Bush favored oil companies because of his ties to the industry, and oil companies are notoriously bad stewards of God's creation.

Abortion:

a)I am pro-Life. I do believe that a fetus is a baby. I don't condemn those who have gotten abortions. I used to be pro-choice. I was adament about it. But I grew with Christ and suddenly one day my eye was open, my conscious was pricked, and I realized the truth.That said, I think that just like God opened my eyes, there is going to be those who will have this done whether it's legal or not because their eyes have not been open. I also know a friend who was a war refugee from a different country whose mother had an abortion. I asked her if she wonders what it'd be like if she'd had that sibling and my friend said no. She said she knows what it'd be like: they'd have a baby that would slow them down and make it more dangerous of them to flee, have one more mouth to feed and it might have cost them their lives. While I do think that whether the fetus is a life is not a gray area, I think that whether the situation is morally wrong can be. Who says that the unborn baby deserves life more than the mother? It is always wrong when it is done just as a matter of birth control. But if the mother has a disease, it is incest, rape, or in a situation such as that friend of mine's mother, who is allowed to judge? Not me. Just Jesus. Actually, that's the truth in all situations.b) The law is what it is. Abortion is legal. Just because a Republican is elected does not mean that it will become illegal. Electing a Democrat does not make the situation worse, only the same as it already is, and it's not guarantee that would get better with a Republican. Therefore I believe people who vote on this issue alone--and I know many of them-- are not being reasonable.c) This mainly a judicial thing. However, the President appoints the Supreme Court Judges. That said, over and over judges appointed become liberal in Constitutional interpretation when they get to the Supreme Court. So even if "right" judges are appointed, that doesn't mean that Roe v. Wade will be overturned.

Gay Marriage/Rights:

a) First of all, I do not believe that gay marriage is a civil rights issue. I think it is an issue of human sexuality, which is not an appropriate issue for children to be faced with. I was born in the northeast and when I moved to the southeast when I was seven, I had never heard of homosexuality. After I had been here a few weeks, I was introduced to the subject because every other child in my class, who had grown up in the se had heard of it. A dispropotionate amount of my peers experimented with homosexuality in high school, compared to other areas of the country. The truth is that children should not know what homosexuality is, just as they shouldn't know what sex is. If they need to know why Bobby has to Dads, you just say that that's how his family is... no more detail is necessary, maybe you can bring up Marianne who was raised by her grandma, or how Sue was adopted.Why am I bringing this up? Because it's key in the issue. Especially with Focus on the Family, who I respect but don't always agree with.. I love what they do when it is non-political. I feel they are too propaganda centric when they get political though. But the truth is, in areas where gay marriage is legal, there have been steps to introducing gay "rights' to children. But I don't think it's a right issue. I think you have the legal, though not spiritual, right to sexually experiment if you are above the age of 18. Morally, I do think that homosexual ACTION is a sin, but I think that if you are not attracted to members of the opposite sex you should seek a "cure" to become heterosexual but to follow Paul's example of Christian celibacy.I do not believe in gay marriage, because I believe marriage is a civil issue. But I do think that there should be a method of registering a gay partnership (whether you call it civil union, domestic partnership, whatever) so that that person has the rights of next of kin in a hospital or other situation.For the record, I have many gay friends. I used to believe in standing with them, not because I agreed with them but because living in the southeast I have seen hate from so called Christians... but as I grew closer to Christ I realized I needed to distance myself from the issue. I still have gay friends but I don't approve of it... but I feel the same way about it as I feel about premarital sex, extramarital sex, incest, and sex with animals. And actually, I think that we should focus more on heterosexual divorce than homosexual marriage.b) Both Barack Obama and John McCain do not believe in gay marriage and believe in allowing partners to have rights. So either way you vote, same result.c) This is a state by state and judicial issue.

Warfare/Military:

a) I'm a weirdo when it comes to this... personally I think that Jesus said "turn the other cheek", "love thine enemies" and "forgive". I am a Christian pacifist. I know there is a "time for all things under heaven" but I don't think that we, as Christians, not we as Americans, are supposed to or are supported by God to get involved in the military. Or at least, I think that the majority of Christians should stay out. Individuals may get a call. I hope so, or else a large amount of our brethren have been majorly misled. I think a portion have, regardless, but I hope the number is small.However, my fiance is at war.As an American, I was deeply affected by 9/11. But I think that Iraq is not the war we should fight.If we must fight, we should put our efforts into Afghanistan. Or even Saudi Arabia.But now, the terrorists are strong in Iraq. They were not before we began the war. They came because we came and they wanted to oppose us. But they are there now.We need to get out. But we need to get out smart. Our history is far too full of situations where we helped a country put in power a future enemy (Castro, Hussein as two examples).I hate war.b) Obama wants to pull out in a smart timeframe. That's good... but he's also under a lot of pressure from liberals who would get out today and make things worse. McCain stubbornly refuses a timeline. While that is bad, that also is responsible in some ways. I'm a little more for Obama in this, but I do want out.I also admit a bias. My fiance was captured by the Taliban a few years ago. A dark part of me wants to put our efforts into Afghanistan to get rid of their threat to our safety.Our troops actually tend to prefer Obama's view, from what I've heard.c) This is an executive issue. It will be the President's responsibility.

Education:

We should do better. We can.One negative thing about the Democratic party is there support of early education, that is, pre-kindergarten. No study has shown that it helps children. Children that young do best staying with their parents. I think it is mainly championed by poor families because it is state funded daycare. However, single parents and two income families need daycare anyway. As long as it is not made REQUIRED I am fine with it happening as a choice parents can make, just "four year old kindergarten" is in my state.I am also very anti-vouchers. They are NOT enough to send a poor child to private school. Unless a parent already has 90% of the money, it won't help them. What this does do is take the money away from the already stripped for money public schools that the parents already sending their kids to private school pay in taxes. It would help homeschooling parents, and it would be like a 10% or less coupon for affluent families. But even though I love homeschooling and actually intend to homeschool, they are a small percentage of Americans. And I think that the poor Americans sending their kids to public school need these funds desperately to get their kids the best education possible. It actually makes the distance between the quality of private and public education greater without enabling low income families to feasibly choose a private school option.Bush's "No Child Left Behind" is not working. Just to let you know.I am huge that the method of education should be left up to the parents, with minimums determined by the state. That is, a child should be able to read on X level, express themselves in writing on a X level, understand and analyze these types of literature, be cultually literate on these writer's movements, master arithmetic, be proficient in algebra, geometry, pre-Calculus, statistics, be able to use a high tech calculator, be exposed to the practice of art, be art history literate of huge names/movements, know the major history of the world, western civilization, their nation, and their local area/region/state, be introduced to a foreign language, be introduced and be encouraged to practice a variety of physical exercises/sports, be exposed to the practice and basics of music, be computer literate, be able to type 30 words per minute.... something along those lines, as a minimum for what one should know by the time they graduate high school.I believe in government assistance in scholarships, grants, and loans, and am grateful for those I recieved.b) I realized that while I know what I believe, perhaps because I am out of college and have no children, I hadn't looked up specifics on what the candidates think. I did now and I agree with Obama, not McCain, mainly because McCain is pro-voucher.c) This is a legislative issue.

Okay, that's all I can think of... well gun rights, where I believe in the second amendment but anyone who is voting on that issue soley is silly to me...

Now, after all that, I return to voting with God.I am leaning toward Obama, as myself. But maybe I will be led to vote for McCain or a third party candidate.

Maybe you are leaning for McCain but will pray and be led to vote for Obama.

You might think "Wait? If we all ask, won't God lead us to vote for the same person?"

Not necessarily. Maybe McCain will win and needs my vote to win, since he lost your vote. Maybe you needed to vote for Obama to show your obedience to God because he knows you oppose Obama so strongly. Or vice versa. Or maybe I vote for a third party candidate becuase that candidate will get a 1% of my states vote, which is more than he or she ever expected and it will change her life. Or maybe I need the humility of thinking my vote doesn't "count"...

Or a hundred other reasons.

God is in control. I believe that. Whoever win, will win because God allows it.

Maybe this will be done to protect Christians and their point of view-- the Focus on the Family/ 700 Club views, maybe...

Or maybe it will be the exact opposite because Christians are to persecuted. We are. Jesus was, and we are no greater than our Master. We may be killed for our faith, and there is no greater elevation that could happen to a Christian.

I do believe the end of the world is coming... but I don't know if it will be in the next fifty years or the next five hundred. But it says that it will get worse before it gets better.So if the President elected causes WWIII or the biggest economic boom in centuries it's all for good.

I believe the Christian life is apolitical... that is, we should know "right" but we also know that we musn't get entangled too much in politics, which is those of world ruling the world.